Ok let me start by saying Im not pregnant yet but hope to be in 2 months. I've only been eating PB for 10 days and I've lost 7 lbs! I seem to be eating anywhere from 50 -80g of carbs a day( fruit and veggies)and I feel good but I'm thinking that wouldnt be a good idea while pregnant right? When I get pregnant should I add potatoes and rice back into my diet? Should I make sure I reach 150g? Want to make sure I'm doing it right especially while I'm growing my baby :) any advice is appreciated.

I'm very overweight im 5'4 ,started PB at 233.8 lbs and am now 226.6 lbs, I would really love to not pack on the pounds with this pregnancy, with my daughter I gained 76lbs eating SAD. Now to be fair I had just lost 76 lbs (6 week body makeover)before I got pregnant with her so I basically gained all the weight I had lost back, but still. Ideally I would lose the bulk of this weight prior to trying to concieve but my husband and I have put off having another child for 2 years now because of my health issues(graves disease/ hyperthyroid). I had a total thyroidectomy a month ago and am now on synthyroid 150mg. I wish I would've know abou PB before having the surgery and seen if changing from eating SAD to PB would have helped bring my autoimmune disease into remission. But shoulda, coulda, woulda, what's done is done. Can't grow my thyroid back so I gotta deal with what I've got.

02-06-2013, 11:00 AM

banananutmuffin

I can't offer you any advice from a medical perspective.

For me, now that I'm preggers, I eat more starchy carbs in the form of rice and potatoes. Cutting carbs worked for me to drop those last 10 pounds... it didn't make sense for me to stay VLC when I'm growing a baby since I'm not going to stay at my low weight of 102 lbs. lol. BUT I do know some people with bad gestational diabetes whose doctors recommended they eat VLC, so I'd say it depends on each individual's personal circumstances.

I still don't have rice or potatoes with every meal, just one or two. I just go by the way my body and energy levels feel, to be honest. I don't count carbs or calories or anything.

02-06-2013, 11:16 AM

MamaGrok

There's nothing better you can do for your baby than be primal before, during, and after conception.

There's nothing in primal that says you can't eat potatoes.

And there's nothing in white rice that your baby needs.

You pick the level of carbs that your body leads you to, and that will probably be more than zero while pregnant, but the *quality* of your calories is more important now than ever. So make sure that non-nutrient-dense carbs don't replace nutrient-dense foods. Make your carbs count - colorful veggies, sweet potatoes, fresh spring berries, etc.

Traditional societies - ALL of them - fed their women super nutrient-dense diets in the months just before, all during, and after pregnancy (the three years of nursing). Lots and lots of seafood, liver, pastured eggs, fish eggs, butter, (fermented) cod liver oil (depending on where they lived). They saved their best, most nutrient-dense food, for these women, because it is the most critical time for ensuring a healthy next generation.

02-06-2013, 12:51 PM

Juliemama

Agree with above! I wanted starchy veggies in butter or roasted potatoes...yum yum. If you are under the care of a traditional OB they will check your urine each visit for ketones....and if you have a high level, will counsel you to eat more and drink more water.
Good luck!

02-06-2013, 01:19 PM

Dragonfly

My siggie has a couple of link that may be helpful.

02-10-2013, 07:49 PM

vlo1125

Thanks for all the feedback, I hope ill just be able to listen to my body once I become pregnant. So far so good though, 2 weeks of eating primal and I'm down 8.2 lbs!

02-10-2013, 08:02 PM

notlupus

Personally, if I were you I'd wait at least several more months. If your thyroid levels aren't sorted out and you don't have a doc overseeing them very carefully while pregnant you can end up with some very serious issues in the kid. You don't want that, so wait a little longer.

02-10-2013, 08:04 PM

ChocoTaco369

Just eat real food. Don't focus on fats, carbohydrates or protein in specific quantities, but make sure that all those sources are Primal. There is nothing that makes fats healthier than carbohydrates - it all comes down to nutrient density. Grains are toxic carbohydrates, vegetable oils are toxic fats - so there are bad guys in each camp. What you'll want to do is listen to your body and eat what you crave, but do it primally. Learn to make good associations. For example:

- Are you craving candy? It's probably a sugar craving. Eat fruit instead. You'll get the natural sugar you crave, but it'll come in a healthy form and likely kill your craving.

- Are you craving pizza, pasta, bread or cereal? It's probably a craving for starch. Eat potatoes, sweet potatoes, bananas, plantains, even white rice in moderation. It should crush your cravings for starchy grains since it's really just your brain wanting more glucose, and you just have a deep-seeded association from childhood to crave grain-based junk carbs when you want glucose. Create a new association with healthy sources!

- Are you craving cake, brownies or ice cream? This is a tricky part. You could be craving fat OR starch OR sugar. So go make yourself a steak with a baked, caramelized sweet potato with some butter and cinnamon. You'll get healthy fats, caramelized sugar in the sweet potato and starch from the sweet potato. That should crush that craving.

After awhile, you'll start naturally associating cravings with healthy food. Now I crave things like steak, baked plantains, Greek yogurt, cheese. Last week I wanted steamed broccoli. Badly. I bought 5 heads. Maybe I was deficient in some mineral that broccoli is rich in? Go with your cravings! Your body knows best! Just pick healthy choices. Best of luck to you on your journey.

02-12-2013, 06:19 AM

NDF

[QUOTE=ChocoTaco369;1090659]Just eat real food. Don't focus on fats, carbohydrates or protein in specific quantities, but make sure that all those sources are Primal. There is nothing that makes fats healthier than carbohydrates - it all comes down to nutrient density. Grains are toxic carbohydrates, vegetable oils are toxic fats - so there are bad guys in each camp. What you'll want to do is listen to your body and eat what you crave, but do it primally. Learn to make good associations. For example:

- Are you craving candy? It's probably a sugar craving. Eat fruit instead. You'll get the natural sugar you crave, but it'll come in a healthy form and likely kill your craving.

- Are you craving pizza, pasta, bread or cereal? It's probably a craving for starch. Eat potatoes, sweet potatoes, bananas, plantains, even white rice in moderation. It should crush your cravings for starchy grains since it's really just your brain wanting more glucose, and you just have a deep-seeded association from childhood to crave grain-based junk carbs when you want glucose. Create a new association with healthy sources!

- Are you craving cake, brownies or ice cream? This is a tricky part. You could be craving fat OR starch OR sugar. So go make yourself a steak with a baked, caramelized sweet potato with some butter and cinnamon. You'll get healthy fats, caramelized sugar in the sweet potato and starch from the sweet potato. That should crush that craving.

After awhile, you'll start naturally associating cravings with healthy food. Now I crave things like steak, baked plantains, Greek yogurt, cheese. Last week I wanted steamed broccoli. Badly. I bought 5 heads. Maybe I was deficient in some mineral that broccoli is rich in? Go with your cravings! Your body knows best! Just pick healthy choices. Best of luck to you on your journey.[/QUOTE]

THIS!!!

Don't think in terms of carbs, fats and protein when you are trying to conceive or are pregnant. Just think in terms of whole real food and listening to your body (and baby's) needs. Choco did a fabulous job of distilling how some craving can actually be signs of your body caving something else.

02-12-2013, 09:22 AM

vlo1125

[QUOTE=notlupus;1090657]Personally, if I were you I'd wait at least several more months. If your thyroid levels aren't sorted out and you don't have a doc overseeing them very carefully while pregnant you can end up with some very serious issues in the kid. You don't want that, so wait a little longer.[/QUOTE]

I hear ya, I have my labs done once a month, we are waiting till my tsh is at least at 1.0, if its not by next month then we will wait till it is. Once my levels are normal and I do become pregnant I'm probably going to have some kind of doctors appointment every week for the duration of my pregnancy. Between my ObGyn , fetal maternal specialist , and endocrinologist I'm sure they'll have monitoring covered!